Biohazardous agents encompass a wide range of chemical compounds used in agricultural, military and industrial applications. Some organophosphorus compounds used in agricultural and military applications are highly toxic and hazardous to both human health and the environment. Organophosphorus compounds comprise the active ingredient in pesticides such as parathion and in G-type nerve agents such as Sarin, Soman and VX, developed for chemical warfare. The nerve agents, which can be absorbed through both skin contact and inhalation, exert their lethal effects by inhibition of acetylcholinesterase, an enzyme critical for neurotransmission. Halogenated compounds (organohalogens) which are commonly found in solvents and pesticides present both acute and long term hazards to the environment and human health. In light of the serious health risks posed by both organophosphorus compounds and organohalogens, it is essential to be able to detoxify these molecules and to decontaminate surfaces and substances contaminated with these agents.
Chemical based decontamination solutions such as DS2 have toxic and corrosive properties. Enzymatic techniques, using hydrolytic enzymes, are water-based and distinguished by low toxicities, making them relatively non-hazardous to personnel, equipment and the environment Control of pH is essential for enzyme-based chemical warfare agent decontamination and other hydrolytic systems. Conventional chemical buffers have limited capacity to maintain the pH near the optimum for the organophosphorus or organohalogen hydrolyzing enzymes. Catalytic buffering, in contrast, relies upon enzymes to produce ions from a substrate in order to regulate the pH of a solution. Effective catalytic buffering of enzymatic decontamination reactions requires that the catalytic buffering enzyme be active under the reaction conditions required for the organophosphorus hydrolyzing enzymes.